Pollen Street announces €132m Senior Secured Agrisolar Facility for Di Carlo Holding

Pollen Street Capital (“Pollen Street”) is pleased to announce the closing of a €132m Senior Secured Bond Facility for Agren, an Italian Agri Solar project company sponsored by Di Carlo Holding (“DCH”). DCH is developing 14 sites of large-scale (139 Megawatt) solar advanced agri-photovoltaic (PV), combining energy generation with agricultural use, across Puglia in the south of Italy.

The project benefits from a Next Gen EU government incentive which includes a grant equal to 40% of allowable Capex and a fixed 20-yrs tariff, conditional on the project being completed on time and having agricultural activities taking place on the land.

Pollen Street’s facility will be used to fund the construction CAPEX for the solar farms, taking place over the next 12-18months.The EPC activities have been awarded to CMC, which will construct the 14 plants in close collaboration with DCH’s engineering team to ensure compliance with the construction and grid-connection deadlines set by the GSE.

Matteo Di Carlo, founder & CEO at DCH, commented: “Agren reflects DCH’s commitment to building a circular and sustainable industrial platform linking renewable energy, innovation and efficient resource management. We aim to demonstrate that integrated and efficient use of resources can generate long-term economic and environmental benefits for the regions where we operate. This financing marks a key step in our growth journey, supporting the scale-up of a business model that connects innovation, sustainability and community impact at the core of Italy’s energy transition”

Matthew Potter, Partner at Pollen Street, commented: “Project Agren is an exciting opportunity to accelerate the development of AgriSolar in Italy. The deal highlights Pollen Street’s commitment to investments in innovative businesses with high-quality collateral as well as in the renewable energy space driving positive impact across Europe. The Di Carlo Holdings team have an established track record, and we are thrilled to partner with them on this transaction and further support their growth as they innovate in the critical renewable energy space.”

In the transaction, GC Advisory assisted DCH as financial advisor, supporting the financing activities, the preparation of the financial model, and the coordination of the due diligence process.  Hogan Lovells acted as legal advisor to DCH, assisting in the negotiation of the financing documentation and project contracts. Legance, Protos, Marsh, and Afry acted respectively as legal, technical, insurance and market due diligence advisors. EY acted as model audit advisor.

Pollen Street was assisted by ADVANT NCTM for the legal and financing activities related to the bond issuance.